View Full Version : Why recommend Parkay or equiv.???
rjridgely
04-26-2007, 23:24
Why do people use any form of margarine, knowing that it is trans fat and kills you slowly.
Real Butter in moderation is much healthier...
and...
EVOO is a much tastier alternative and trail safe in the hottest of temps when in original form.
Garlic in EVOO in the TDZ = foodborne illness
bigcranky
04-27-2007, 09:21
I dunno, maybe because it's a lot easier to find Squeeze Parkay and such at tiny grocery stores along the Trail? Not much selection of Extra Virgin Olive Oil at the Gas-n-Go. You can sometimes get a pound of butter, but then you have to split it with a couple of people, and it's more of a pain to use.
At home I'm very particular about what I eat. No trans fats, no high fructose corn syrup, lots of veggies and fruit. On a weekend hike, I can pack pretty healthy food. But on a longer hike, I'm hungry enough that I just figure I have to eat whatever is available, and not worry about it.
People are gullible and believe advertising.
Boycott Margarine!
:)
Pennsylvania Rose
04-27-2007, 09:27
You'd have to live under a rock not to know that evoo is better for you, but people eat what they're used to or what's easiest to find. My husband is a chef and he'd rather eat canned tamales than anything. YUCK!!!
SGT Rock
04-27-2007, 09:34
Well I imagine why they don't reccomend butter is because it would go rancid fairly easy on the trail.
Use olive oil instead. Tastes great - less filling.
Frolicking Dinosaurs
04-27-2007, 09:38
As Big-Cranky notes, you have to eat what is available sometimes. At home, I use canola and olive oil exclusively and real butter instead of margarine. I will use squeeze parkay, any veggie oil and even lard on the trail.
Easier to find and you can use tons of it. EVOO at even medium quantities completely overpowers whatever the flavor of what it is you are cooking. I want calories from my fat. I can stand more Parkay than EVOO.
As for the health part, no way Parkay is unhealthy to a thru-hiker. The thru-hiker metabolizes everything too fast for nasty fats to accumulate.
That said, at home I am a Plugra man, 100%.
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=Blue]Why do people use any form of margarine, knowing that it is trans fat and kills you slowly.Everyone is dying slowly, it is the end result of being alive.
What you want to avoid are things that can kill you quickly, like riding automotbiles.
(BTW, this is the first I'd ever heard that butter was health food. I always thought of butter as something that would kill me slowly.)
digger51
04-27-2007, 15:15
Squeeze bottles of Country Crock Spread are terrific and easy to carry. Besides, when I am putting in the miles I don't think a little extra fat will hurt.
Unless you are much stronger person that I, you will be eating the fatty, full of calories, transfat filled food on your long hikes. AND LOVE IT
Fat and Calories.
Gimme that 1000 calorie and 80 grms of fat pint of Ben and Jerry's.
Gimme that Mickey D's Big Mac and milk shake (.25 mile or less fromthe PCT at Cajon Pass)
You will devour that sausage gravy and biscuits.
Vegetarian you say? You will still eat all the food that is bad for you...and love it.
http://www.pmags.com/joomla/index.php?option=com_gallery2&Itemid=36&g2_view=core.ShowItem&g2_itemId=5794
http://www.pmags.com/joomla/index.php?option=com_gallery2&Itemid=36&g2_view=core.ShowItem&g2_itemId=4355
http://www.pmags.com/joomla/index.php?option=com_gallery2&Itemid=36&g2_view=core.ShowItem&g2_itemId=14455
Rhino-lfl
04-29-2007, 16:04
Unless you are much stronger person that I, you will be eating the fatty, full of calories, transfat filled food on your long hikes. AND LOVE IT
Fat and Calories.
Gimme that 1000 calorie and 80 grms of fat pint of Ben and Jerry's.
Gimme that Mickey D's Big Mac and milk shake (.25 mile or less fromthe PCT at Cajon Pass)
You will devour that sausage gravy and biscuits.
Vegetarian you say? You will still eat all the food that is bad for you...and love it.
I actually think I ate a vegetarian once.
aaroniguana
04-29-2007, 18:13
Me too, but it was non-smoker so even with three ramen seasoning packs there was no flavor at all. Hardtack tastes better than vegetarians.
Me too, but it was non-smoker so even with three ramen seasoning packs there was no flavor at all. Hardtack tastes better than vegetarians.
...and vegans are just too stringy.
Frolicking Dinosaurs
04-29-2007, 20:42
They make a protein-rich veggie stew when you add carrots, potatoes and celery.
rjridgely
04-30-2007, 08:12
A friend of mine, back in New Hampshire, had this bumpersticker on his truck....."Vaginatarian"
Coming from a 48 year-old man, that put a happy tear in my eye.
fiddlehead
05-01-2007, 00:18
Back when i didn't care as much about weight, i had a plastic screwtop container that was leakproof and i always carried a stick of butter. It never went bad on me and was nice on my Cinnamon rolls in the morning or in my mac and cheese at night. Most stores would sell them by the single quarter stick, but that was back in the 80's and i don't know if they will anymore. Butter is a nice thing to have on the trail though.
Hikers use Parkay because it has lots of calories, which they need, and it adds taste to otherwise bland food.
I'm not a dietitian, but hard to believe that saturated fats are bad for a thru-hiker who is working off thousands of calories every day.
John Klein
07-08-2007, 15:29
Well I imagine why they don't reccomend butter is because it would go rancid fairly easy on the trail.
How long would a squeeze bottle of margarine last without refrigeration?
The Old Fhart
07-08-2007, 16:15
John Klein-"How long would a squeeze bottle of margarine last without refrigeration?"I've carried Squeeze Parkay for up to 2 weeks. It will start to separate though. You can generally use a whole bottle on one week.
Frolicking Dinosaurs
07-08-2007, 16:44
I've carried real butter and stick margarine in a jar as well as Squeeze Parkay - they have never gone bad between resupplies. While I use real butter and EVOO at home, I use what is available when doing long-distance hiking. As several have noted, Squeeze Parkay is pretty much a staple in small stores while EVOO (or any OO) is not.
Re: bumper sticker and 48 yo guy -- we are somewhat older than 48, but not dead !!!
njordan2
07-08-2007, 18:00
Why do people use any form of margarine, knowing that it is trans fat and kills you slowly.
Real Butter in moderation is much healthier...
and...
EVOO is a much tastier alternative and trail safe in the hottest of temps when in original form.
Garlic in EVOO in the TDZ = foodborne illness
What is TDZ and how does garlic in EVOO in the TDZ equal foodborne illness? I thought that raw garlic had antimicrobial properties. In fact, as the legend goes, Alexander the Great recorded in his notes observing his men even consuming fetid meat without falling ill, so long as they consumed enough raw garlic with it.
What is TDZ
Temperature Danger Zone? 40F to 140F. Bacteria multiplys rapidly there.
Trans fats are bad for you under any circumstance. Believing that burning a lot of calories per day while hiking means that NO trans fats consumed will stay in your system long is, perhaps, wishful thinking. Now, whether you will find many alternatives to Parkay at some remote small retailers where you resupply on the AT, others here can answer that better than I can.
Now, about that unrelated question about whether vegetarians and vegans taste worse than carnivores: I have it on very good authority that carnivores like sharks, lions, etc. etc. consider human carnivores to taste "gamey" while they consider vegans to be the equivalent of the choicest corn fed beef. As a vegan myself I find this alarming. And it might explain why a bear I encountered in northern Minnesota this May showed more interest in me than I was comfortable with. ;)
Edit: As for FD's suggestion for cooking vegetarians, that would alarm me coming from someone as good-natured as the dinos are reputed to be, but I suspect that Dan Quayle somehow hijacked FDs account for the purposes of posting on this thread. Note the spelling of "potatoes" in post #14.
Fiddleback
07-08-2007, 20:23
Some people want to avoid cholesterol when they can. Butter has lots, Parkay has none. Folks with healthy systems are advised to keep their cholesterol intake to 300mg or less per day. That's the equivalent of ten pats of butter.
So choose your poison, trans-fat or cholesterol. I'll take the butter...
FB
Temperature Danger Zone? 40F to 140F. Bacteria multiplys rapidly there.
TDZ is not the real culprit here, an anaerobic envronment is. There are six things that micro - organisms [ and actually all organisms] need to have in order to survive. Food sanitation courses use the acronym /mnomic device F.A.T.-T.O.M as a way to describe and remember them
F-Food
A-Atmosphere - It actually means Ph -acids make good preservatives
T-Time how long an organism has had to make other organisms
T-Temperature -basically the TDZ
O- Oxygen or absence of
M-Moisture . Even if present it has to be available to the micro-organism. Sugars for instance are hygroscopic-they tie up water molecules. and make it unavailable to micro-organisms.
Submerge a wet food like garlic in oil and the bacteria that need oxygen drop out of the picture the anearobic botulism bacteria thrives. Store the garlic oil in a place that's between 40-140F and bad things happen.
It gets better;
There are two large classes of foodborne illness:
Food infection -The illness is caused by living organisms-kill the organism and the problem is solved. Food infection can be cooked out
Food intoxication.-The illness is caused by the toxins released by the micro-organisms. Food intoxication cannot be cooked out.
Botulism is a food intoxication.
Frolicking Dinosaurs
07-08-2007, 22:04
Pota---toes :D
Wanderingson
07-09-2007, 01:59
There are several products to use in lieu of the real stuff.
Products like this one are available to enhance a little flavor. Using EVOO provides options as well.
http://www.frontierherb.com/prdDisp.php?I=2396&br=&full=y&PHPSESSID=7aaa766aaa8a3c9ca35afd17b59c8692
Well I imagine why they don't reccomend butter is because it would go rancid fairly easy on the trail.
Use olive oil instead. Tastes great - less filling.
What rock said!
My bottle of olive oil took THREE YEARS to go bad*, so I'm thinking that it should last for a few months on the trail.
*OK, so I havn't done a mojor amount of hiking in a few years,
no,
strike that,
it was a,,,,
test,
yes,
that's right a test: to see how long it would last in my pack.
BTW, rancid olive oil tastes exactly like the stink of a stink bug.
Doctari.
Jim Adams
07-09-2007, 06:53
come'on,
a thru hiker will eat whale blubber if it improves ramen!
geek
fiddlehead
07-09-2007, 07:51
I carried butter in a no-leak container lots of times on the trail. Never once had it go bad. Maybe those who have are not eating it fast enough. One stick per resupply was usually about right for me.
I actually think I ate a vegetarian once. Does that make you an humanitarian?
Lone Wolf
07-09-2007, 20:18
Does that make you an humanitarian?
makes him a carnivore, slick.:cool:
atraildreamer
07-09-2007, 22:10
..vegetarians and vegans...Native American words meaning:
"Lousy hunters!" :D
njordan2
07-11-2007, 18:48
Excellent answer, Old Bear. That is very helpful information. Thanks.
Jack Tarlin
07-11-2007, 19:07
I just discovered this thread......the first post amazes me.
Lots of things might kill you slowly, including margarine.
But I suspect jogging, snow shovelling, or other forms of exercise have killed as many folks as Parkay.
People use margarine because it's convenient, cheap, freely available, lasts a long time, and most of all, it makes typical hiker entrees taste like something you'd wanna eat, as opposed to cat food.
Used in moderation, there's nothing wrong with Parkay. Olive oil is better, but for heaven's sake, the constant fear-mongering on food is ridiculous.
The New York strip I'm about to eat will be killing me slowly, too, I suppose, along with the bourbon before dinner and the Camel afterwards. Never mind the garlic-mashed potatoes, vegetables in cheese sauce, and a wedge of cheesecake if I can find one. I'm on vacation and I'm going hiking in a few days, so I'm not overly concerned.
Meanwhile, you guys can say hello to the tofu, lentils, and all your other friends. Tell 'em I'm having a swell time and I DON'T wish they were here.
Parkay a killer?
Well, for the moment, I'll risk it. Surely, there are greater dangers.
Appalachian Tater
07-11-2007, 19:46
Actually, Jack, a little bourbon every day makes you live longer. Enjoy!
Jack Tarlin
07-11-2007, 20:08
Geez, Tater, were THAT true, I'd outlast Methuselah!
Oh, and we're gonna have to 86 the cheesecake. However, Jester's mom's apple cake with Breyer's vanilla will have to do......oooooh, just think of the transfats.
Can't wait.
minnesotasmith
07-11-2007, 22:53
If my memory on this is correct, bourbon distilleries put the fusel oils (3, 4, and 5-carbon alcohols) back into the product. Yuk. If you want distilled alcoholic bevs, stick with something like Scotch or vodka where this is not done.
taildragger
07-12-2007, 09:46
I'll kill myself slowly with my food. That being said I am nearly a vegetarian (the only meat that I will usually eat is something that I caught or shot, unfortunately I am out of that till I go fishing this weekend...) But as far as worrying about butter vs margarine...I figure that I am more likely to get killed by a deer, or a heart attack caused by quail or a turkey gobbling in my ear. I'll eat what I like and die when I die.
As for those ragging on vegetarians, try giving up some of the hamburger meat and tacos for a while, just a couple of months, then come back to it. I've realized that most meat really really sucks, at least it does up here, Oklahoma could be different (fresh off the cow in the backyard maybe?). That being said, a good steak is hard to pass up, and anything with deer duck or wild turkey must be eaten, its a sin to pass it up.
Dances with Mice
07-12-2007, 13:14
If my memory on this is correct, bourbon distilleries put the fusel oils (3, 4, and 5-carbon alcohols) back into the product. Yuk. If you want distilled alcoholic bevs, stick with something like Scotch or vodka where this is not done.Doubtful. Fusels would be in short column batch distilled products like 'shine. I've toured both Jim Beam & Jack Daniels distilleries and they use tall refluxers which would separate the fusels. Wouldn't make sense to carry the dregs around all that separation processing.
Now if you're talking Kentucky Gentleman or similar, I wouldn't begin to guess. But it's a job for Gas Chromatography / Mass Spectroscopy and I'll need a large collection of samples in unopened original containers covering a wide range of products and production dates for the results to be statistically valid.
PM me for mailing address.
Doubtful. Fusels would be in short column batch distilled products like 'shine. I've toured both Jim Beam & Jack Daniels distilleries and they use tall refluxers which would separate the fusels. Wouldn't make sense to carry the dregs around all that separation processing.
Now if you're talking Kentucky Gentleman or similar, I wouldn't begin to guess. But it's a job for Gas Chromatography / Mass Spectroscopy and I'll need a large collection of samples in unopened original containers covering a wide range of products and production dates for the results to be statistically valid.
PM me for mailing address.
PM sent but your mailbox was full. Oh well... :rolleyes: